1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and, more particularly, to a refrigerator which increases thermal efficiency by forming a smooth airflow in a component compartment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a refrigerator comprises a refrigerator compartment, a freezer compartment, and a cooling system to cool items stored in the freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment.
The conventional cooling system comprises: a compressor to compress a refrigerant; a condenser to condense the gaseous refrigerant compressed by the compressor to a liquid refrigerant; and an evaporator to evaporate the refrigerant received from the condenser while absorbing surrounding latent heat, thereby generating a cooling air in the surroundings.
As shown in FIG. 1, the refrigerator is provided with a main body 8 having at least one storing compartment, and a component compartment 1 provided in a lower part of the main body 8, the component compartment 1 having an opening on a back side of the main body 8. A cover 5 is detachably provided in the opening of the component compartment 1.
The component compartment is provided with components for a cooling system, for example, a compressor 2 and a condenser 3. A fan 4 is provided adjacent to a sidewall of the component compartment, blowing toward the compressor 2 and the condenser 3, to cool the compressor 2 and the condenser 3.
The cover 5 is provided with air inlets 7 which are disposed at a portion of the cover 5 corresponding to an inlet of the fan 4, and which allow outside air to be let in by driving the fan 4, and air outlets 6 which are disposed opposite to the air inlets 7, and which allow air which absorbs heat released from the components of the component compartment 1 to be let out.
A cooling process of the component compartment with the above configuration is described as follows, with reference to FIG. 2. The fan 4, which dissipates heat generated from the compressor 2 and the condenser 3, operates as the refrigerator operates. That is, if the fan is rotated in one direction by driving a fan motor, an outside air is let in through the air inlets of the cover 5. The inlet air passes through the condenser 3 and the compressor 2 in turns, absorbs the heat generated therefrom, and is let out through the air outlets 6 of the cover 5.
The conventional dissipation structure described above does not efficiently use a space of the component compartment 1, since the fan 4, the condenser 3, and the compressor 2 are disposed in a line. Also, the conventional dissipation structure does not smoothly let air in and out, since the air inlet 7 and the air outlets 6 are disposed parallel to a blowing direction of the fan 4. Thus, a portion of the air which absorbs the heat of the component compartment 1 remains in the component compartment 1, thereby lowering the efficiency of the refrigerator.